Multicell battery



March 11, 195 HR. c. ANTHONY E1- AL 2,826,681

MULTICELL BATTERY Filed Jan. 225. 1954 INVENTORS mm B N m M m r. Z in F W g 12 United States Patent O MULTICELE' BATTERY nHerman. .R. C.:Antho ny,. Madison; and Henry G. Friang,

Wausau,'Wis., assignors; by mesne assignments; to The Electric Storage Battery Company, Philadelphia,IPa., a'corporation of Newilersey .Application January '28, 195,4;1Serial No. 406,442

"13 Claims. H (Cl; 240 10.61)

".Tliis. invention relatestoa newiniultic'elL batterywhich .isadapted for use. in conventional.flashlights-or vasaIdisposable battery unit in a throw-awaytype.fiashlight.

Conventional flashlights now in use generally consist of at least three. separate .parts. .Thesexpartsinclude a :head containing the reflector andlamp, generallyin the form of: apre-focused .unit; ambodyrportion :whi-chris nothing more than a cyIindricaLopen-end tube .on which is mounted the. switch; and a bottomclosure whichtis ...usuallyprovided with. an springtto compress: the dry .cells and. thereby assure good electrical contact. .This .type: of w-flashlight is admirably-suited aforv'many;.purposes. It is v ruggedcand adaptable to. a plurality of uses because of r.th-SWltChllT lg:-E1Hd focusing 'featureswhich areavailable. However, while this-istructureais desirable for. many pur- -poses, it is .anexpensive structure to manufacture and has some defects which are iinherenttinthis ;type *of. design. Fort-example, when a dryucell employed with-inthis type of flashlight. leaks, the corrosivefiuids released" by thecell will frequently cause. .the head ;.and bottom 1 members: to becomesocorroded-that they are ifrozento;the.tubular portion of:-the.flashlight. tln -additiongdhe switchtrnechanism,- .isi-a1frequent source. ot-trouble :andsisconetzofrthe most expensive parts 'of ithe-ientire structure .tosrnaniifao .turetsuccessfully.

:rFinally,.the three-component type ofzstructure is rather .complex .to manufacture 'in:that a-great many' separate ..operations are required,-and a relativelydargecnumber .\of separate parts are required to: be assembledintothe rrfiinal, threercomponent structure.

The :object: of :the present rinventionfisu to provide. a relatively simple :fiashlight structure which. is inexpensive id-manufacture.

.tA-further object of thecqinvention is to provide a' rne- .t-alliccasing for a pluralityofpdry cells; which casing serves bothtorenclose thei cells and as the tubularcasing and. bottomsclosure*memberin a conventional flashlight.

Another object of the invention is to providean'inexpensive flashlight component which maybe discarded '1 when its; useful life: has beenexpended.

:Still another object .of:the invention is to provide a component part of a'fiashlight structure which has a min- I eimum number of parts.

Yeoanother objectofthe invention is to providea t-flashlight structure in which the damage caused by cell aleakage is minimized by having the casingof-the "cells function as the tubularunemberof the flashlight, the whole t being: disposable when the life of the dry cells has expired.

"These and :other objects of the invention may be 1,.achievedrby enclosing a plurality. of dry cellswithin 'a smetalsjacket lined with an insulating tube 'which forms a --barrier to the passage of electrolyte and-the corrosive products of the dry cell reaction. The requisite number of dry cellsare placed within the'lined metal jacket and *thetopand bottom edges of "the metatjacket curled over so as to exert a compressive force on the cells contained "therein. The-battery unit thereby produced comprises 2.

.2 plurality (of cells enclosed rwitha t'ube of insulating materiah Each cell is individually sealed while Withinithe insulatingflt'ube'so that the Paper tube functionsas .a part .bf' the seal. "The uppermost: cell 1 is similarly sealed but 51in addition has. a top closure. member whichis insulated .lfromthe .metalpjacket byfthe insulating tube. and'which makes electrical contact with. the...inner' electrode of the :cell. A .separate'. bottom..closure .member is "alsoproivided which ..is.".:in .electrical. contact .with the container electrodes of .the .lower. most dry. cell and (which .may be Heitheniinsulated. fr0m- 01min -.'electrical contactwith- ..the metal jacket. The structure is completed.bytcurlingkin lithe endsof. the metal jacketto. apply .a compressive-force H toathe. cells and. therebytseahthettopt and. bottom ofmthe w battery; unit while at .theasameatime idecreasingtinternal .resistance. in. the battery.

:FEhe detailsof these structureswmay"besbestnunderstood 1. r.lgiy .refei.-encei to 1 the: drawings, in which:

Eig. his aiverticalwview in partialwsection of: a battery 5. structure mOf wthe present i invention iprov-idedwith-I a; .pre-

eiocused flashlighthead;

2t is.avertioal :sectionalnvieweof. -onetformuoftthe r battery 1 structure {of-the invention;

ufiigi 3- is: a partiahvertical sectional :view; of. a: modified .form of tthezinvention.

i tReferring now 10: the; drawings: int 'detaiLJ for? the pun pose of describing the inventiontzclearly, theastructurezrof zithe'zinventioirwill be described:as iciapplies toia structure 1 a for enclosing: twoi:conventionally-sizedz;dry; :rcells. ItztiiS o:zbeuunderstood;however; thatirthe .inventiomis equally :arapplicableiito". three;:ifour,=tifive; ortimorerdrylcellsriivhere 1a:1conveniennttdisposable assemhlyeof this:sizeix 1d esired. ..:As shown; in v Fig." lt-the battery structure l of the linventi'on: :is' desirably. provided with threads 2; on other-receptive rmeans whereby a pre-focused flashlightr head fi 'inay be :removably attaehed thereto.

! In ma kingithe batter-y stru'cture of the presentinvention, a container electrode 4 containing inner electrd-de =5 a nd depolarizer mix 6"may be-inserted within an in- -sulatiugtube7 having an inturned llange S. -'-A sea-ling '--washer -9 may be placed so as to* provide-anair space -above the 1 depolarizer mix d before 5 the cell is inserted within thelinsulati-ng 'tube. The inner electrode 5=-is" de- 4 -sirably provided "with a b'rass or other suit'ablejcap 10 whichprovides good contact betweenadjac'c'ntcellsand also assists insealing thecell. H

When the' cell is in r place within the'insulatiug-tube-7, a a layer of sealingcompound 11 "may be; poured over" the top-of the sealing gasket" 9 in-otder t'o'sealtheblectrolyto within the cell. The sealing material 11 is preferably'a 'hardenable substance 'which setsrapidly -upon "cooling,

such as asphalt.

"Ithas been founddesirable"thaththe "sealing fmaterial completely fill the s pace within the container electrode above the sealing" gasket andextenda further distance above the top edge of the co'ntainento form" a'.s'eal with the insulating tube. The sealing materialthereby forms an effective seal against the'surface' ofthefcontainer. elec- 'trode and the-insulatingtubeat theperiphery ofthe cell arid" against the 1 surface .of'the inner electrode and cap 10 atthe'center of the cell.

"-When'this mode of assembly is emirl'oyeditsometim'es happens that a small amount. of thetsealingmaterial" 11 r-may splash or *spill'on the top surface of cap 10 which has been placed over the 'innerpelectrode s. In ordef'to insure good contact "between cells, despite any. such gspillage 'or splashing,thei cap 10 .is preferably provided with a sharp; point 'orj group of points .12 centrally located "thereon. .ThesepointsflZ maybe provided'mer'elyby "punchingdhroughthe cap. "Itjhasbeen foundtha't when asharp projectingpoint"isprovidedcn'the cap""1'0, the

' over the first cell. manner as the first cell.

projection will cut through any overlying sealing material 11 to establish good contact with the bottom surface of the superjacent cell.

A second cell 14 may be placed withinthe tube-directly This cell may be sealed in the same The first step is providing the cell with a suitable sealing gasket and then covering the gasket with a layer of sealing material, such as asphalt. A top closure 22 of tin-plated steel or other suitable substance is then placed over the end of the inner electrode 25. The top closure member 22'is provided with a skirt portion 26 with a curled-over end portion 27, which engages the inner wallof the paper insulating tube 7. The top wall of the paper tube may then be crimped over the end portion 27 of the skirt to encase the cells within the paper tube.

This assembly is then preferably inserted within a steel tube 30 having an inturned end flange 31. In order to establish electrical contact between the steel jacket 30 and the bottom of the container electrode 4 of the lower cell, a metallic disc 32, preferably of tin-plated steel, is placed on the inturned end flange 31 of the steel jacket 30 before the paper-encased cells are inserted therein. This bottom disc 32 may be provided with an embossed design 33 which is decorative and which also assists in establishing good contact between the container electrode 4 and the steel jacket 30. Tin-plated steel is preferred as the material for the bottom disc 32, since this material is resistant to corrosion by the electrolyte of the cell. While tin-plated steel is preferred, any suitable substance may be employed.

As a final step in securing the dry cells firmly within the steel jacket 30, the top sidewalls 35 of the steel jacket are crimped over the top of the insulating tube 34. Suflicient force is used in the crimping step that some compression is exerted upon the cells by the inturned end flange formed by the crimped-over sidewalls 35. This compression assures good contact between the cells and also imparts rigidity to the structure and contributes to its overall strength. The inturned end flange 34 of the insulating tube 7 serves to insulate/the steel jacket from the top closure.

The steel jacket 30 may be formed in a plurality of ways. A simple and preferred method of making this tube is to roll up a flat sheet. The sheet is then secured by a butt weld, by crimping, or by some other suitable joint, where the two ends meet. When this type of manufacturing method is employed, the threads 2 may be stamped into the steel jacket while it is in flat, sheet form. A substitute for the threads 2, a series of small nibs 2' of point-type projections may be raised in the steel jacket along a path simulating the path of conventional threads. This modified form of the thread structure is illustrated in Fig. 3.

It is to'be noted that the tube 7 insulates the steel jacket 30 from the container electrodes of the dry cells. The paper insulating tube should also be sufliciently long at its inturned end flanges to insulate the inturned end flanges of the steel jacket. Thus, at the bottom of the cell the inturned flange 8 of the paper tube 7 may extend slightly beyond the terminal of the inturned end flange 31 of the steel jacket 30. Electrical contact with the bottom of the container electrode is madethrough the bottom disc 32. At the top of the battery structure, the inturned upper end flange 35 of the steel jacket is insulated from the top closure member 22 by the inturned end flange 34 of the paper tube.

In the modification of the invention illustrated in Fig. 3 of the drawings the bottom closure member 40 is placed in direct contact with the bottom of the container electrode of the lowermost cell. The bottom member is then insulated from the metal jacket 30 by the curled in edge of insulating tube 7. A separate bottom cap 42 may be detachably secured to the metal jacket by friction fit or by suitable threaded or other receptive means. The bottom cap 42 is preferably provided with a raised central portion 43 which is adapted to make electrical contact with the bottom cell terminal 40 when the cap 42 is placed on the metal jacket. With this structure the metal jacket 30 may be placed in the electrical circuit or not as desired merely by attaching bottom cap 42. When used as the battery unit in a throw-away type flashlight, the bottom cap can serve as switching means whereby movement of the raised portion 43 in and out of contact with bottom terminal 40 is effective in switching the light on and off.

The battery unit of Fig. 3 may also be used as the source of electrical energy in the conventional 2 or 3 cell flashlight. When used for this purpose, it will be understood that the bottom cap 42 .is usually omitted so that bottom terminal 40 is electrically insulated from the metal jacket of the battery. The electrical circuit is completed by contact between the bottom terminal 40 and the spring element of the conventional flashlight bottom closure which is electrically connected with the lamp ,through the flashlight case and the switch mounted thereon.

It has previously been proposed to seal a dry cell with a poured wax or asphalt seal and to enclose the sealed dry cell in a paper insulating jacket and then in an outer steel shell. The present invention adapts this steel jacketed dry cell structure to a multicell unit in which the poured seal of each individual cell of the unit utilizes the insulating tube to effectively seal each cell from the other cells in the unit. Where the unit encloses two dry cells, it is a convenient package for use in a conventional, three piece, 2-cell flashlight. When the unit is provided with threaded or other receptive means 2, it may form the body of a flashlight itself. The flashlight structure is completed by the addition of a pre-focused head 3 in which electrical contact with the dry cells is provided through the steel jacket 30 and through contact by the bulb 161 with the top closure member 22. Switching action is provided by moving the entire top member 3 along the threads 2 so that the bulb moves either into or out of contact with the top closure member. When the dry cells become weak, or when their life has expired, the entire battery unit 1 may be thrown away. The flashlight head 3 may be kept for re-use with a fresh battery unit. If desired, a spring 102 may be employed to resist the movement of the bulb 1E1 into contact with the top closure member 22. When such a spring is employed, accidental switching on of the flashlight caused by vibration or other shocks to the flashlight structure is prevented.

In the flashlight head 3 depicted in the drawings for purposes of illustration only, a simple type of construction is shown. It should be understood, however, that the flashlight head may take any suitable form, and that many modifications will occur to those skilled in the art which may be employed with the battery unit of this invention.

We claim:

1. A battery comprising a cup electrode of a first dry cell within a tube of insulating material, sealing material enclosing the open end of said cup electrode and engaging the inner walls of said tube, the internal electrode of said first dry cell extending through said sealing material and making electrical contact with the superposed bottom of a cup electrode of a second dry cell, sealing material enclosing the open end of said second cup electrode and engaging the inner walls of said tube, a top closure member in electrical contact with the internal electrode of said second cell and engaging the inner walls of saidtube of insulating material, said tube and cells being enclosed within a metallic jacket maintaining said cells under compression.

2. The battery unit of claim 1 in which the metallic jacket is provided with receptive means for a flashlight head.

3. The battery unit of claim 1 in which a bottom closure member is in electrical contact with the cup electrode of said first dry cell and insulated from said metallic jacket.

4. A leak-resistant battery unit comprising a plurality of cylindrical dry cells in superposed relation and in series electrical contact, each cell comprising a cup electrode containing active cell ingredients and a pencil-like interior electrode, each cell being sealed by a snugly fitted washer and by sealing material which extends beyond the confines of the cup and is enclosed by a sheath of insulating material in tubular form which encases all of the cells, a metallic closure covering the open end of the uppermost cell in electrical contact with the pencil-like electrode thereof and engaging the inner side walls of said insulating sheath, and an outer metallic jacket having an inturned end flange at each end engaging the insulating sheath, and in electrical contact with the cup electrode of the lowermost cell.

5. A battery unit of claim 4 in which electrical contact between the metallic jacket and the cup electrode of the lowermost cell is achieved through a metallic disc in electrical contact with the cup electrode of the lowermost cell and secured between an inturned end flange of said insulating sheath and an inturned end flange of said outer metallic jacket.

6. The battery unit of claim 4 in which the metallic jacket is exteriorly threaded about its periphery so as to detachably receive a flashlight head.

7. A subassembly for a battery unit comprising a first dry cell supported within a tube of insulating material by a inturned end flange of said tube, sealing material which both seals oil the top of said first dry cell and engages the inner walls of said tube, the internal electrode of said first dry cell extending through said sealing material and making electrical contact with a bottom of a second dry cell also having sealing material which both seals ofi the top of said second dry cell and engages the inner walls of said tube, a conductive closure member over the sealing material of said second dry cell and in electrical contact with an electrode of said second cell and having a skirt portion engaging the inner walls of said tube of insulating material, and an inturned end flange of said tube enclosing the cells within said tube.

8. In combination, a battery unit comprising a metal. jacket, a plurality of dry cells sealed to an insulating tube within said jacket, said dry cells being in series, superimposed relation and insulated from said metal jacket,

top and bottom closure members for said battery unit, a

flashlight head attached to said battery, said metal jacket being electrically connected to said bottom closure memher.

9. The combination of claim 8 in which said bottom closure in electrical contact with said dry cells is secured between an inturned end flange of the insulating tube and an inturned end flange of the metal jacket.

10. The combination of claim 8 in which a detachable bottom cap electrically connects said bottom closure and said metal jacket.

11. A battery comprising a plurality of dry cells which have cup-shaped outer electrodes and rod-like internal electrodes, said cells being in superimposed, series rela tionship within a tube of insulating material surrounded by a metal jacket, sealing material closing 0111 the open ends of said cup-shaped electrodes and engaging the inner wall of said tube of insulating material.

12. The battery of claim 11 wherein the ends of the metal jacket are inwardly crimped to maintain the battery structure under compression.

13. The battery of claim 11 wherein the metal jacket is provided with receptive means for a flashlight head.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,297,654 Burgess Mar. 18, 1919 1,421,561 Pugsley July 4, 1922 2,198,423 Anthony Apr. 23, 1940 2,272,907 Deibel Feb. 10, 1942 2,526,692 Ruben Oct. 24, 1950 FOREIGN PATENTS 389,754 Great Britain, Mar. 23. 1933 

